A reunion of the alumni of National Institute of Technology (NIT), Rourkela, was organised at the centre for alumni relations and resource generation on Saturday. Around 60 distinguished alumni gathered at the institute and reminisced about their time spent at the NIT.

Venkat Narsmiham Peri, an alumnus, spoke on the emerging opportunities for students in the industries and on the importance of taking up challenges in life and the importance of creativity and innovation. Speaking at the event, the CEO of Rourkela Steel Plant, G.S. Prasad, urged the gathering to take up challenges to address social issues, reinforce industry-institute relationship and strengthen the alumni cell of the institute. The director of NIT-R, Sunil Kumar Sarangi, too, spoke on the occasion.

A former principal, (then REC, Rourkela) Somnath Mishra emphasised on the purpose of holding reunions as it helps strengthen the relationship between the alumni and his or her alma mater. F.C.Mohanty, entrepreneur, and a very senior alumnus delivered a nostalgic speech.

The dean of the alumni centre, Bidyadhar Subudhi, talked about the initiatives taken by the alumni cell to make maximum use of social networking platforms to reach out to the alumni members who have settled all across the world. The event concluded with round table discussions on various aspects of the functionalities at NIT-R. The current crop of students also interacted with the alumni and learnt about the various aspects of professional life.

Annual function

The centre for agri-management of Utkal University hosted their annual function on March 18. Titled Panthan -2015, the event was held at the MKCG auditorium of the university. The students of agribusiness management, along with their counterparts from other institutes, took part in various competitions. Cultural activities were also organised.

The annual function was held under the chairmanship of the vice-chancellor A.K.Das. Many industry experts and professors of different management courses of the university addressed the students on the challenges faced by agriculturists. The entire function was organised smoothly under the guidance and supervision of Deepak Kumar Ram, the head of the centre for agri-management.

Networking advantage

A three-day management development programme on developing networking skills for the executives of Power Grid Corporation of India Limited was organised at the International Management Institute, (IMI) Bhubaneswar. The event was held last week. Students got an opportunity to gather knowledge about networking skills, which would make them better managers in the near future. At the inaugural programme, Ramesh Behl, the director of the institute spoke on human resource management and networking skills. He said inter-personal relationship development is the key to generating positive results in business. The executives of Power Grid Corporation of India from various parts of the country took part in the programme. The entire event was directed and co-ordinated by Swarup Mohanty.

Entrepreneurship summit

National Entrepreneurship 2015, a two-day summit was organised by the entrepreneurship cell of NIT, Rourkela on March 21 and 22.

On the first day, the participants took part in workshops on patents and intellectual property rights and on social entrepreneurship. Faculty members from IIT-Kharagpur conducted the workshops.

On the second day, experts spoke on the challenges faced by start-ups and the opportunities and problems related to the stock markets. Teams from many reputed engineering and management institutes such as CET, XIMB and OEC participated in the summit. Somanatha Mishra, the former director REC, Rourkela and F.C. Mohanty, a 1971 batch chemical engineering student who is a big entrepreneur, were made the guest of honour during the inauguration of the summit. Vortex by Estinno, a portable washing machine made by the students of the engineering college was displayed at the two-day event.

Cultural events

The annual function of the students' union of Sambalur University was organised last week at the Biju Patnaik auditorium. The two-day event saw students participating in several cultural events.

A dance competition titled War of Rivers was held at the event. All the hostels of the university participated in the dance competion. The performance of the students captivated the audience. A meeting was also organised on the inaugural day of the annual function. Rakesh Gupta, the head of Hindalco Power Plant was made the chief guest. Avinash Patel, the president of students' union and secretary Sauri Narayana Sahu along with the vice-president of the university, Saroj Kumbhar organised the annual function.

Blood donation

A mega blood donation camp was organised on the campus of the Balasore College of Engineering and Technology (BCET) in association with the district blood bank on Sunday.

Students and volunteers along with the staff members of the college came in large numbers to donate blood on the occasion.

Around 245 units of blood were collected. The chairman of the college, Manmath Biswal, principal Abhay Panda and director Sriman Srichandan encouraged the students to donate blood and also told them how donation helps the society as a whole. Blood bank officer R.C. Kisku conducted the collection work.

Forensic conference

The medico-legal society of Odisha organised its 33rd annual conference at the Hi-Tech Medical College on March 22.

Many established forensic experts from the state and outside participated in the conference.

Reputed experts spoke about forensic animation and medico-legal aspects of suicide notes. Besides, they also shared their views and experiences on these topics. The students of the college also shared their thoughts. A souvenir was released on the occasion.